Astonishing clubroot control!

In the spring of this year SHS (Shetland Horticultural Society) member Feri Bartai offered to carry out a trial growing brassicas with the use of Böd Ayre Seaweed Product for the control of clubroot. The outcome was astonishing…..read on…..

I have been gardening for more than 30 years and my main interest is growing vegetables. On my vegetable plot I do not use pesticides or apply artificial fertilisers. I have developed various methods to deal with pests and diseases, some more successful than others.

Brassicas fed with Seaweed products for clubroot controlOn my present vegetable plot I encountered a disease of the brassica family new to me: the dreaded clubroot, locally known as “Fingers and Toes”. My plot is near the house and was formerly used as the kale-yard. Shetland kale was grown for many years there; a plant tough and resistant. But the problem is there in the ground and rotation does not help. Cauliflower and kohirabi were the ones which were worst affected. When seeing a cauliflower the size of a lemon I knew what to expect when I saw the root stump.

I have tried different remedies, one being to grow the plants to a reasonable size in pots and then planting them out with a good root system. It was a reasonably successful method but quite labour intensive.

This year I decided to experiment with the Böd Ayre seaweed products and the results were quite amazing. I have applied the recommended amount of dried seaweed (Sea-Feed Granules), concentrating on the ground earmarked for growing brassica plants prior to planting. Some cabbage and cauliflowers were planted on the same plot, but without the dose of seaweed. The difference was quite obvious.

I still have some kohirabis left in the ground, old and tough, and gradually being fed to the hens, but the roots are fibrous and have no clubroot. My cauliflower crop is the best yet; only one or two plants showed a hint of clubroot on the root, but that has not affected the plant itself. I shall try the Seaweed Product on our bit of land for growing turnips – another brassica prone to clubroot.
Vegetables fed with Seaweed products for clubroot control
Vegetables fed with Seaweed products for clubroot control

Hand and carrot image is public domain courtesy liftarn on openclipart.org